The University's Institute on Aging recently awarded $150,000 in grants for pilot research projects to six University faculty members.
"Over the past century science has extended the life expectancy of humans and now the Institute on Aging wants to improve the quality of life during those extra years," said John Lach, electrical and computer engineering professor and grant recipient.
The Institute began to advertise applications for the pilot project grants, designed to stimulate research on topics related to aging, in March, Director Timothy Salthouse said.
The Institute received 41 applications from 40 different disciplines and over 100 people throughout the University, Institute Administrator Sara Agre said.
Agre and Salthouse, along with the Institute's advisory board, narrowed the applications down to six projects that would each receive a portion of the $150,000 total awarded.
"We were looking for projects that were likely to generate data that would eventually result in successful applications for external funding," Agre said.
A pilot or preliminary project is the first step in receiving a research grant, Salthouse said.
"You first have to demonstrate that your ideas are feasible when applying for a research grant," he added.
The recipients will spend the next year, beginning July 1, using their pilot grants preparing to apply for research grants which can be up to three times as much as the original amount awarded, Salthouse said.
Agre explained each project's budget was addressed and evaluated to determine what percentage of $150,000 each group would receive.
The six recipients of the grants are Prof. Bethany Teachman, Dept. of Psychology; Prof. Bernhard Maier, Dept. of Neuroscience; Prof. Chad Dodson, Dept. of Psychology; Prof. Barry Condron, Prof. Dept. of Biology; Prof. Carol Manning, Dept. of Neurology; and Prof. John Lach, Dept. of Electrical and Computer Engineering.
Lach was awarded a grant to develop wearable technologies that can enable researchers to more effectively collect helpful data.
"These pilot programs are a fantastic initiative, especially considering all the Baby Boomers that are getting older," Lach said. "We have to figure out how to take care of them."
Most National Institutes of Health grants fund the research process of a study and not the technology used for the study, Lach said.
"This grant will be extremely helpful because it gives me the resources to develop a prototype that can be used to collect data in a pilot study and hopefully lead to a grant," Lack said.
Salthouse said he is optimistic that the Institute will be able to award these grants twice a year, with the next deadline in October.
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